Sir, - Jean Mulholland (December 28th) asks why the UN are not allowed to monitor the activities of the Israelis, as it would be "good for the world to see what was going on".
There is a simple answer to this: the UN is a coffee house for liberals. Send in UN monitors and Israel will lose the power to defend itself properly. Terrorist groups like Hamas can act as they please, as Arafat has no control over them, and as a result Israel has to defend itself in a way that is correct, but which would be compromised if UN monitors were on the ground. - Yours, etc.,
Dermot Cooper, Donnybrook, Dublin 4.